OK, starting to panic that labour might be close and have no hospital bag packed. Essential items please!

[gaelicsheep]

I'm a second timer so I've no excuse. I'm also under no illusions, so what will NOT be featuring are:

CDs
books/magazines
sandwiches
essential oils
etc.

So far I reckon:
a couple of old nightshirts for labour
nightwear for after
normal clothes for after and underwear
wash stuff

What else? I'm having a complete mental block on this! TIA!!

vasaline or similar to apply to baby's bum as soon as born (to make getting the meconium poos off easier)
chololate (energy during labour)
food for your hd/dh/birth support people
your mobile, or a list of phone numbers so you can share the news
camera
baby things - vest, clothes, hat, nappies, wipes
muslin wrap for swaddling

Car Seat - good luck and congrats in advance!

Oh bless you both for replying. Was about to give up to go to bed and worry...I think we're OK with the baby stuff thanks - as in Tesco's only down the road from the hospital so we'll worry about anything we've forgotten if we need to. I meant to clarify this is just for me.

Camera! Good point.
DH will have to fend for himself on the food front
Couldn't eat or drink a thing in my last labour

I've probably got ages to go yet - I'm only 36 weeks. But baby has noticeably dropped since yesterday, walking is VERY uncomfortable now, head's been well down for the past couple of weeks. And I've been getting the nesting urge very strongly the past few days.

Probably all wishful thinking. I just want this over and done with!

Tis bloody hot to be heavily preggers, hope your baby arrives early and safely!

breats pads and maternity pads
towel if your hospital doesn't provide

breast pads, even

Not at all hot here gingerkirsty, thankfully. I was very very heavily pregnant in summer 2006 which was really really hot for weeks on end. I remember it was 30 degrees on the labour ward and the ice chip machine had broken down.

I have a Tesco carrier bag sitting in the corner of the bedroom with a good selection of pads in it. Towel's a good one - thanks!

I've been putting this off for ages, can you tell?! I don't even have a bag to put this stuff in yet, how stupid is that? All our weekend-type bags seem to have gone walkabout over the years.

watching with interest, i'm due number 2 on saturday and only flung a few things in a bag a few days ago.

don't forget to put your notes in your bag.

what about some kind of jug or bottle for post birth, when you go to the toilet you might need to pour warm water over your stitches if you have any.

a nursing bra if going to bf.

your list of non-essentials made me laugh - essential oils...too funny. (however, tea tree is good in the bath post birth but i wouldn't bother taking it to hospital)

your list suggests food non-essential - i beg to differ! first time round i didn't get tea and toast due to it being close to midnight. so on postnatal ward i ate every single morsel i'd packed.

and don't forget your birth plan! first time for me it was about two pages, now it's only two lines and only focused on having a physiological third stage. the only thing i care about is that they don't come wielding scissors to cut the cord two seconds after he's born.

All I used were:

Wash stuff & change of clothes
Baby outfit
Bar of chocolate
Carseat

I agree with sunshiney. I had a very fast first labour last week and neither wanted nor needed to eat anything during it. But we didn't get up to the ward until after dinner so if I hadn't had a bag full of muesli bars and bananas and chocolate I would have been very very hungry.

I have just packed a basic hospital bag after having to spend best part of last week in. Not quite 30wks yet so i didn't bother putting nappies, baby clothes, muslins etc in.

Pyjamas (cropped because of the heat)
Few pairs of old pants
Flip flops
Pair of socks
Towel
Hairbrush/toothbrush etc
Babywipes (for face etc)
Spare hair elastics
Phone and charger
Couple of spare t-shirts
Mini fan with water bottle attachment

Can someone advise me where you get one of those fans with the water bottle attachment?

Amazon. I started a thread when i got out of hospital as it was so hot in there.

Thanks everyone. I'm still here - been having a few niggles but I think it's just stretching ligaments as the bump's dropped so much.

Some good ones there. I knew all this first time round but it seems I've now erased the entire experience from my memory.

That is a good point about food for afterwards. I didn't get up to the postnatal ward til gone midnight last time. Got toast but yes I was absolutely ravenous after eating not a thing during labour. I'll pack some with afterwards in mind.

I bought a bag to put it all in today - yay!

I wish I had packed more pairs of pants cos I only had one pair and my waters went in them so I then did the rest of the labour without pants and had none afterwards.

My mother came in afterwards with lots of sweets, some freshly squeezed OJ and a couple of smoothies which were most appreciated.

I wished I had some cough sweets as the G&A gave me a really sore throat. Was also very glad I had my own supply of paracetamol for the afterpains as the MW took about an hour to bring some for me - by then I had just taken two of my own and felt loads better.

Depends how long the labour will take. Never had time for anything. Most useful was mobile phone to call everyone afterwards.

Pads big HUGE maternity pads and even bigger pants.

Definitely food. The day after DS was born, bloody hospital forgot to feed me till about 4pm, so was very glad of muesli bars and bananas I had packed.
FLipflops
Own towel in case hospital towels are either absent or minging
Something to read (I was climbing the walls with boredom on the first night - was sent in to be induced Thursday morning, not actually induced till Friday morning but they wouldn't let me out, either.)
Wooly socks - feet often get cold in labour/just afterwards.
SOmething passable but comfy to go home in (ie have it in the bag in case you have to rush in wearing your dressing gown or your waters go all over your clothes and there isn't time to change).

best thing i brought coming from a mumsnet advice line was moist towels!

sorry if TMI but the amount of gooey blood... the heavy duty sanitary towels, lots of them so you can change often and the moist toilet tissues to wipe and clean even when sore down there...